Priesthood of the Believer
WHAT IS
THE ‘PRIESTHOOD OF THE BELIEVER’?
Dr. Elmer Towns
What is meant by the priesthood of the believer?
First, we need to look at the Old Testament example of a
priest.
Priests in the Old Testament
We know that God called the nation of Israel to
be God’s chosen people, that they might witness for Him, but they failed to do
it.
In Exodus 19:6, God says:
“And
you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words
that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”
So this verse explains why He chose a group of
people to be His priests.
In Isaiah 61:6, God is speaking to Isaiah
concerning the nation of Israel. He says:
“But
you shall be called the priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the
ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their
glory you shall boast.”
The key word here is “minister.”
Certainly, the priesthood of the believer,
first, deals with the fact that we are to be ministers.
In 1 Peter 2:5, Peter is speaking of the
born-again believer, who is now part of a priesthood, to offer up sacrifices
acceptable to God when he says:
“You
yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a
holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ.”
Priesthood of the Believer
in the New Testament
In Revelation 1:6, the Word of God, again,
talks of the priesthood of the believer, that God has made us kings and priests
unto God.
In Revelation 20:6, He says that those priests
(born-again believers) of God and of Christ … shall reign with Him a thousand
years.
So the priesthood of a believer is twofold:
first, in the Old Testament, we find that the priest was an intercessor between
God and man.
The same thing holds true today, that we, as
believers, are to be witnesses for the Lord Jesus Christ to the world as His
children (priests) in that sense.
We also have the responsibility of prayer. This
does not get anyone into Heaven, but we are to pray for the lost, and their
needs.
Certainly, some people would not come to us as
they would come to a priest, as some denominations believe priests have powers
to answer prayers.
I do not have power to answer prayer, but I do
have the power at my disposal to take someone’s needs to God.
This is the primary purpose of the priesthood
of the believer — that we have direct access to the Lord.
Also, concerning the priesthood of the
believer, we know that Jesus promised us the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, who
would guide us into all truth.
So, in this respect, we have the ability to
study His Word, that God Himself may illumine our hearts and teach us.
As we are told in the Gospel, when Jesus Christ
was crucified — when the veil was rent in the Temple — that made bare the Holy
of Holies.
So today we have direct access to God as His
children. This, basically, is the priesthood of the believer.
Conclusion
As believers, in relationship to our
priesthood, we need to realize that we have a responsibility to each other — to
pray for one another, to assemble ourselves unto God, to worship together.
God has set aside the church today — local
assemblies of born-again believers, that we might, in every aspect, be priests
through that church — to reach out to a lost and dying world.
We have a responsibility to the lost — to tell
them about Christ.
Of course, as believers in Christ, the ultimate
responsibility should be our love for the Lord, and our worship of Him.
In this, we are priests, a holy nation,
separated unto God.
God never
calls us to do something for Him that He does not empower us to do if we are
willing to do the work and time. Take the time to get to know God in an
intimate way.
Your
purpose on earth is to shine God’s love to a lost and dying world.
Open your
ears and your heart to the Lord and be excited about your new future serving
Him in spirit and truth.
God has
made it possible for you to know Him and experience an amazing change in your
own life.
Serve
Him.
Wait on
Him.
And
expect … for He is able to do much much more than you can ask or imagine.
Settle
that sin issue ...
“Father God, I confess I
am a sinner and my sins have separated me from You.
I am truly sorry. I
now want to turn away from my past sinful life and live a new life pleasing to
You.
Please forgive me, and
help me avoid sinning again.
I believe that Your Son,
Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and
hears my prayer.
I invite Jesus to become
the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Thank
You that according to Your Word, I am now born again.
Please send Your Holy
Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. I promise
to study Your Word – the Bible.
Use me
for Your glory.
In Jesus' Name I pray.
Amen.”
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Dr. Elmer Towns is a college and seminary professor, an
author of popular and scholarly works (the editor of two encyclopedias), a
popular seminar lecturer, and dedicated worker in Sunday school, and has developed
over 20 resource packets for leadership education.His personal education
includes a B.S. from Northwestern College in Minneapolis, Minnesota, a M.A.
from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, a Th.M. from Dallas
Theological Seminary also in Dallas, a MRE from Garrett Theological Seminary in
Evanston, Illinois, and a D.Min. from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena,
California.He is co-founder of Liberty University, with Jerry Falwell, in 1971,
and was the only full-time teacher in the first year of Liberty’s existence.
Today, the University has over 11,400 students on campus with 39,000 in the
Distance Learning Program (now Liberty University Online), and he is the Dean
of the School of Religion.Dr. Towns has given theological lectures and taught
intensive seminars at over 50 theological seminaries in America and abroad. He
holds visiting professorship rank in five seminaries. He has written over 2,000
reference and/or popular articles and received six honorary doctoral degrees.
Four doctoral dissertations have analyzed his contribution to religious
education and evangelism.
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